Together AI partners with Saudi Humain to build $5 billion, 250-MW data center
U.S. AI startup Together AI signed a deal with Saudi state-backed Humain to construct a 250-megawatt data center in Saudi Arabia, projected to generate $5 billion a year.
Together AI, a San Francisco-based artificial-intelligence startup, entered into an agreement with Humain, the Saudi Arabian government’s AI company, to build a 250-megawatt data center in Saudi Arabia. The partnership is forecast to generate $5 billion in annual revenue, according to the company. Co-founder and CEO Vipul Prakash said the decision reflects mounting resistance from U.S. communities toward data-center projects, which are facing cancellations and moratoriums.
The new Saudi facility will enable users to access Together AI’s cloud platform while their workloads run on local hardware. This venture nearly triples the firm’s computing capacity and follows a trend of major tech firms—Oracle, Google, Microsoft and Amazon Web Services—establishing data-center operations in the kingdom through Humain. Humain was created by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to accelerate Saudi Arabia’s AI sector, and U.S. policy has facilitated its access to advanced semiconductors. Prakash added that the company will continue to seek international sites as global capacity expands faster than in the United States.
Why it matters
The deal expands AI computing capacity abroad as U.S. communities push back against domestic data-center growth.
How this story developed
- Jul 9 Texas AI Data Centers Spark Pollution Debate as Rural Residents Face New Hazards
- Aug 4 Abbott announced a statewide moratorium on data center approvals pending detailed audits.
- Aug 7 Abbott’s pause adds an audit requirement for pending data‑center grid connections.
- Aug 7 Amazon proceeds with construction of a 7.65‑gigawatt natural‑gas power plant in Pecos County for an AI data center.
- Aug 10 Governor Greg Abbott issued a directive halting approvals for data‑center facilities that lack full public disclosures on tax incentives, electricity, water use and community impact.
- Aug 13 Local bans on new data centers have risen past 500 jurisdictions.
- Aug 18 Incumbent Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro announced that new data-center projects will no longer receive priority permits or tax breaks unless they cover their full electricity costs, limit water consumption and engage locally. In Texas, Democratic challenger Gina Hinojosa aired a TV spot accusing Governor Greg Abbott of favoring data-center interests over rural communities. Similar moves are unfolding in Arizona, New York, Illinois and Ohio, where officials are imposing moratoriums or stricter standards on the industry.
- Aug 20 State legislators in New York and California have introduced new measures targeting data‑center development.
- Aug 23 California legislators introduced two bills targeting utility tariffs and environmental‑review exemptions for new data centres.
- Aug 25 New York and Texas announced moratoria or pauses on new data‑center projects and federal legislation targeting data‑center permitting has moved forward.
- Aug 26 Governor Shapiro signed an executive order ending fast‑track permitting for AI data‑center projects.
- Aug 28 New York and Texas each announced a pause on new hyperscale data centres.
- Aug 30 Judge Lesa Gelb ruled that Salem Township’s planning commission violated Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act by excluding residents from a data‑center ordinance meeting.
- Aug 30 Austin’s city council is set to vote on a resolution that would create a specific land‑use category and review process for large AI data centers.
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